Aomine's Shadow
by Shirocchi
Summary: "Aomine-kun, I am your shadow." Aomine wanted to be normal, he didn't ask for this madness. When Aomine wakes up after an accident, he suddenly gains the ability to see what others can't; shadows in their true form. How can he convince the team that he is not in fact, seeing things, and even more so challenging; introduce his shadow to basketball? Supernatural AU! (AoKuro, BL/yaoi)
1. Chapter 1

AN: I'm surprised this super cliche title hasn't been used yet 8'D So yeah, after a 2 year hiatus from fanfiction I'm finally back, starting afresh and all. First Kuroro no Basuke fic! Pardon the super weird story line and slow pace, the plot bunny was being stubborn.

Warning: Unbeta-ed (as of now), yaoi/shounnen ai, OOC, alternate universe, weird writing style

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Chapter 1

The last thing Aomine Daiki remembered was the rapid closing of the distance between twin headlights and his unsuspecting self. Eyes widened in shock before everything turned a blissful black.

Crusted eyelids peeled themselves open as navy irises adjusted to the sudden introduction of blinding light, squinting and blinking in an attempt to filter the offending brightness that had entered his eyes. Aomine sat up, immediately not recognizing the room as his own. Confusion set in as he stretched his sore limbs that felt like they had been neglected for days, when he noticed a sturdy, bulky, white cast that surrounded his ankle which only served to deepen his confusion even more. What on earth had happened to him? Scratching his head in a dumbfounded daze, he suddenly heard the doorknob to his current confinement turn with a click.

"Ah? So I see you're finally up." An unknown man in a white coat that could only be recognized as a doctor's approached the bed with careful steps. He sat himself in a plastic chair perpendicular to the bed before whipping out a clipboard and a pen, adjusting himself to a comfortable position before continuing.

"My name is Dr. Tanabe, I'm the doctor in charge of you for your stay." He paused to let Aomine absorb the information. "Before I go on, tell me what you think is going on." The doctor stared at Aomine expectantly.

Aomine looked around the room once more before finally replying. "Well, I guess I'm in a hospital", he groaned and ruffled his hair as he tried to remember what landed him here in the first place. Flashes of bright car lights and faint memories of screeching tires played in his mind. "And I got into a car accident." It came out sounding more like a question than a statement as Aomine returned the stare with uncertainty.

"Well that's about right," the doctor cracked his knuckles. "You seem to have suffered only a minor concussion as a result, in addition to a broken ankle but you should be relatively fine. You have been unconscious for two days now, so I will leave you here for another day or two to run some tests to ensure that you're all good before discharge, okay?"

Aomine nodded hesitantly.

And with that, the doctor got up and strode out of the room, informing Aomine to call him via the intercom by the bedside if he had any troubles. Aomine sank back into the comfort of the bed after he heard the door close and closed his eyes while taking in everything. It didn't look like there was anything serious, but he was still worried that it would affect his basketball play. Who had even admitted him into the hospital anyway? As his mind pondered on endless questions he found himself dozing off into another sleep despite the amount of rest he already had.

He wasn't sure how long he slept for, but when he opened his eyes, he suddenly found a pair of wide eyed, azure orbs staring straight down into his own.

"Gah!" Aomine shot up comically and scooted to the corner of the bed, away from the eyes that now flashed curiously at him.

"Oh, you startled me there." Aomine furrowed his eyebrows at the figure. With a mop of sky blue hair and similar eyes to match, a pale, petite boy looked at Aomine as if staring into his soul, head slightly cocked to the side with what looked like a mix of curiosity and amusement.

Aomine could only describe him as creepy.

"Are you a nurse or something?" The darker of the two asked. He was only replied with several surprised blinks.

Although, he could be wrong. The unknown boy showed as much expression as a brick wall on his face in his opinion.

After moments of awkward silence and gaze locking, the boy finally lifted his index finger, pointing to his own chest. "You can _see_ me?" He asked with wide eyes.

"Yea, of course I can. Sure you're a bit easy to miss but obviously I can see you." Aomine snorted, sticking his little finger into his ear before continuing. "So? Who are you?"

Aomine was admitted into a single person ward, so he couldn't have been another patient from the room. He wasn't wearing the hospital uniform either and was donned in a simple polo and jeans, so he couldn't be a doctor or nurse or any hospital staff for that matter. And as far as Aomine knew, his door was locked to all unauthorized personal from the outside.

That could only mean that the kid was a visitor… or a bastard who somehow managed to slip in.

"This is very unusual… you can actually see me now." The sky haired boy mumbled to himself under his breath while looking down at himself.

Aomine felt his patience dwindle with every vague response he received and felt a vein pop near his temple. He knew it was bad to get his blood pressure rising especially since he was still recovering, but hey, he had a short temper.

"Listen punk, I answered your question so you answer mine. Who are you?"

"Me?" The stranger shuffled his feet as if unsure whether or not to answer. "I'm Kuroko Tetsuya." He finally replied.

"And why are you here-" Aomine barely had enough time to finish when suddenly the door burst open with an "Aominecchi!", a glaringly blond figure tumbled in, complete with tears and clothing fit for the runway.

"Oh, Aominecchi when I saw that car approaching I thought you were going to die for sure! Are you hurt? Of course you are! Can you remember me? I'm Kise Ryota! Remember this face? And you're Aomine Daiki! You like basketball and Mai-chan and-"

"Kise, shut up." Aomine interrupted before sending a hand to Kise's babbling face, connecting with a satisfying _slap_ and silencing the blond who still tried to talk against his palm. "I don't have amnesia, and I'm totally fine save for some minor injuries, thank you." Aomine sighed. Kise visibly calmed down, a sheepish smile replacing his previously worried features.

"So even an idiot like you knows what 'amnesia' is." A bespectacled green haired male entered the room, taped fingers pushing against his glasses while his other palm faced upwards, holding a box of sorts. "If you had carried your lucky item everyday, like me, this wouldn't have happened, _nanodayo_."

"Nice to see you too." Aomine groaned sarcastically.

The remaining of the Teiko basketball regulars, with the exception of Haizaki, streamed in after the two. Momoi scolded him for being careless, Murasakibara offered Aomine a pocky out of sympathy and Akashi chided Aomine for not noticing the oncoming car. (Well, Akashi could probably see the vehicle from miles away, and could probably foresee the accident as well. Aomine internally cursed the bastard of a captain for being so nonchalant as to not inform Aomine of it.) Small talk circulated around the rainbow haired teens until suddenly noticed the shock of light blue hair from the corner of his eye.

How could he have forgotten about that guy! Suddenly feeling awkward for ignoring him in front of his teammates, he decided it was best he introduced both parties, even if he didn't know the boy that well himself.

Aomine cleared his throat. "Hey guys, I just realized that I didn't introduce you people yet. That dude over there is Kuroko… I think? He dropped by earlier, before you guys came to visit me." Aomine wasn't too sure, but that would suffice for now. He gestured to the pale boy who was now leaning against a corner of the room, round eyes observing the group.

A strange silence surrounded the group until Momoi decided to finally speak up. "Umm, Dai-chan?"

Aomine scowled. "Yeah?"

_"There's no one there."_

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__AN: I'll try to update in one week's time :) Was the writing style too hard to follow? Was the pace too slow? This chapter gives me... unsettling vibes, I'll probably rewrite it when I feel like it.

I know most of you are too lazy to review, but doing so really helps me improve with the feedback and all. Even so, just following/favouriting is also really encouraging and gives me the motivation to write :)

I hope all of you enjoyed it!


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thank you all for the support! It makes me very happy to see that this story is being appreciated :) I'm actually pretty demoralized because I did badly for a major Chinese exam, so I'm just drowning myself in FanFiction lol. This chapter is a lot less descriptive and English fancy, so I hope the inconsistency in writing style doesn't disappoint :l

Super special thanks to those who reviewed! :D _Jake Lodge, Mist 445_ and _Joey Bermuda Ketail_

And thanks to those who both followed and faved! _AngelHeartObession, LenXKagamine12234, Mist445, WinterRaineeDay91, iivogelchen, zanzchi, Joey Bermuda Ketail, pennyblu. _Sorry if I accidentally missed you out :(

Let us begin with the story!

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Chapter 2

_Previously…_

_A strange silence surrounded the group until Momoi decided to finally speak up. "Umm, Dai-chan?"_

_Aomine scowled. "Yeah?"_

_"There's no one there."_

Aomine's frown deepened even further. Sticking an accusing finger into Kuroko's direction, he rebutted Momoi. "I'm talking about that guy over there. Sure, he's got a weak presence, but that ain't mean he isn't there. That's rude, Satsuki."

"Hypocrite." Midorima muttered under his breath.

"Aomine-kun," Kuroko interrupted, a serious yet glum expression plastered on his face. "They can't see me, or hear me. Only you can."

Meanwhile, The Generation of Miracles stared at the direction of Aomine's pointing finger with mixed looks of confusion, irritation and amusement. Aomine took several moments to register what Kuroko had told him. Realization finally hit Aomine and he struggled internally to find an excuse for making himself look like an idiot.

"Ugh, you know what? Never mind. The accident messed up my head a little, I was just seeing things." Aomine's fingers retreated and instead placed themselves on his forehead, suppressing the oncoming headache he could feel that was about to appear.

"Aominecchi, are you sure you're okay?" The worry on Kise's face reappeared. "You still remember how to play basketball right?"

"I'm fine. I just need some rest."

"Mine-chin, pocky?"

"No thanks."

And with that, the Generation of Miracles left Aomine to rest, seeing that he had need it after that whole fiasco.

The door closed once more. Now alone, Aomine narrowed his eyes at Kuroko, blinking a few times to make sure that he wasn't a trick of the light, or a reflection of sorts.

_Okay, so Aomine wasn't seeing things. He was hallucinating now._

"Kuroko, right?" Aomine began, ruffling his own hair in his awkwardness, not believing himself for talking to his own imagination.

Kuroko nodded meekly. He had a thousand things he wanted to ask Kuroko, but he decided on the simplest question first.

"Why are you here?"

Kuroko looked up at the ceiling as he tried to formulate his answer and Aomine grew more and more impatient at the suspense, counting the seconds as he waited for a response.

"Why am I here?" Kuroko echoed. "I was here the entire time, Aomine-kun. You just never noticed me."

"Huh? How long have you been around?"

"Ever since you were born into this realm."

Aomine was even more confused than he was at the beginning. Conjuring up all possible theories from his mind, he spurted out the first one. "Then, are you some imaginary friend from my childhood that I forgot about? And you're coming back to haunt me for abandoning you?"

"No. Neither am I imaginary."

There was a short pause. _'Okay, theory one is down'_ Aomine thought.

Suddenly Aomine felt a light bulb brighten up inside his brain.

"That's it! You're a ghost aren't you! A ghost that's haunting me exclusively." Aomine wore a smirk on his face. "And you've only decided to show yourself now, right after I was on the verge of death. What did I do to you in my previous life? I assure you I'm a totally new and reborn person now. Come on, tell me your troubles so we can help you move on to the afterlife or wherever dead people are supposed to go after life on earth. Holding grudges ain't healthy, you know."

Aomine saw Kuroko's eye twitch the slightest. The sky hair boy sighed before continuing.

"I'm not a ghost either."

"Huh? Then what on earth are you?" Aomine had run out of ideas of what Kuroko might possibly be. One thing's for sure though, he definitely wasn't human… Probably.

Kuroko shuffled his feet again. Aomine noted that it was Kuroko's habit of doing so whenever he was unsure of how to reply. Tense silence filled the air once more before being broken by the smaller boy's response.

"I'm a shadow."

Aomine frowned at the vague answer. "You've got to be a lot clearer than that, punk."

Kuroko bit his lip and then took a deep breath. "I am _literally_ a shadow. Your shadow to be precise."

"Huh? You mean a shadow like the dark spot that is casted on the floor kind of shadow?"

"Yes."

Another bout of awkward silence filled the surrounding air.

"What… So you're saying that you're _my_ shadow. If that's so, then what's tha-" Aomine cut himself of as he stared at the floor in shock, originally intending to point to where his normal shadow would have been. The room was sufficiently illuminated under a mild yellow light, causing distinct shadows to trail behind all objects in the room; the bed, cupboards, and everything in a favorable angle under the light.

That is, all objects except Kuroko and Aomine.

"Is this a trick of the light? I swear I'm supposed to cast a shadow."

Kuroko sat down at the foot of Aomine's hospital bed, taking in a deep breath.

"Your 'normal' shadow _is_ me. Usually humans such as yourself would perceive shadows as the dark, 'you-shaped' silhouette you see trailing behind or casted in front of yourself, basically an area of darkness where light cannot reach." Kuroko paused to let Aomine absorb and to breathe. "However, it seems like after getting yourself in an accident, you suddenly gained the ability to see us human shadows in our true form, in addition to being able to hear when I speak now."

Aomine was stunned. So his shadow, something which had trailed him everyday and yet something that he had overlooked, was actually really this kid and not just a patch of black where light couldn't reach? Did this apply to other people too or was he the only one with a weird talking shadow? Thousands of questions swirled around his head again and his head began to throb at the overwhelming information.

"Wait." He realized. "So you've been following me ever since I was born."

"Yes."

"And you can talk."

Kuroko raised an eyebrow. "What was I doing for the past half hour?"

"Do you have your own thoughts and feelings too?"

Kuroko sighed for the upteempth time. "We shadows are much like you humans in many aspects. We just belong in a different realm and have a different purpose in this world. We also have our own thinking and spectrum of feelings, in which the latter also extends to irritation, Aomine-kun."

Aomine, being dense, didn't catch Kuroko's hidden displeasure. Dumbfounded, he could only utter a _"Whoa."_

"Please continue on with your normal life after this. You won't even notice that I'm around." Aomine had a feeling that Kuroko would be very right about his second statement, but who could remain nonchalant after hearing that your whole life had been some sort of a lie? Did plants have souls too?

"Hey, Kuroko?"

"Yes?"

"So you've been with me ever since the beginning right?"

"Yes."

_"Isn't it lonely? Being ignored by me; by everyone, for the past thirteen years?"_

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AN: Ahaha, yeah. Sorry if the pace is far too slow, I wanted to thoroughly explain the entire 'shadow' concept :x Hope it isn't too weird. Aomine will be out of the hospital by next week! Sorry for abusing italics as well 8D Following or faving really helps with my motivation to write, not to mention reviewing! (anonymous reviews are welcomed too :))

I am also in need for a beta, but I'm kind of shy to approach one :X If any of you would like to volunteer please drop me a PM! :)

Thanks for following this story! You people make me happy 8'D

**EDIT: **'Past fifteen years' changed to 'past thirteen years' because I realized it didn't tally with the timeline 8'D


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Hey! I know this chapter took slightly longer to come out, so thanks for being patient and sticking with this story! I would really like to thank everyone who reviewed, you guys are really help to keep my writing motivation up :) Feedback given was great too, thanks guys :D

Chapter 2 reviewers! _WinterRaineeDay91, Rikka-tan, Another observer of the world, Snowdoll18, Jake Lodge, mokona-au-chocopyuh, Joey Bermuda Ketail. _ I virtually hug you all over the internet 3

As usual, also thanks to those who followed and added to favorites! It's my fuel for writing, hehheh =w=

Chapter begin~

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Chapter 3

_Previously…_

_"Hey, Kuroko?"_

_"Yes?"_

_"Isn't it lonely? Being ignored by me; by everyone, for the past thirteen years?"_

Kuroko face displayed an unreadable expression.

"I'm used to it."

Aomine decided not to ask any more stupid questions that could irk the petite boy even more than he already was. Midnight eyes glanced out of the window, squinting at the bright blue that painted the sky where patches of white clouds lazily drifted by, flocks of black specks dashing across occasionally accompanied by squawks of blaring avians.

_'This has got to be some sort of dream.' _As cliché as it sounded, Aomine genuinely thought so. Despite knowing that his imagination was next to none, he still couldn't trust what his senses were witnessing. Siting up suddenly, he gave himself a tight slap across the face.

"Argh!" Aomine groaned at the throbbing pain that had now spread throughout his cheek. If one looked carefully they could spot the reddish hand-shaped mark on tanned skin. Rubbing the side of his face with the same offending hand, he exclaimed "That wasn't supposed to hurt!"

"Aomine-kun, the accident affected your brain more than I thought it had."

"It's not the accident's fault!" Aomine _almost_ yelled out before realizing that he was still in the hospital. A random outburst from a patient who was supposedly alone in his ward would have probably earned him a direct transfer to the mental department.

"I'm not dreaming right? This is all for real?"

"That's for you to believe."

"Oi! Don't give so indirect ans-" Aomine once again had barely enough time to respond before being interrupted by the opening of the door. Realizing he was still sitting up straight from his outburst, he quickly laid back down inconspicuously, shutting close his eyes and pretending to be asleep so as to not arouse suspicion from whoever came in.

It was the same doctor from the day before, Aomine saw through partially opened eyes. Doctor Wasabi or something, Aomine never had a knack for remembering names.

He heard the footsteps gradually growing louder. "Aomine-kun, wake up. It's me, Dr. Tanabe. I have your medical report."

Feigning a yawn, he sat up and stretched, waking up exaggeratedly from his 'sleep'. "Hey doc," _As if that half-assed effort could actually wake me up._ "Mornin'."

"Aomine-kun, we've received back your medical report. You're all fine and free to go. In the matter of fact, your twisted ankle is already completely healed; just try to reduce the strain on it for the next month or so, okay? Besides that there doesn't seem to be any other problem. Your parents will be here to pick you up soon."

"That's great. Thanks doc." Aomine grumbled. The doctor gave him a reassuring nod before turning around to head out.

"Wait!" Aomine suddenly found himself saying. "Are you sure there's really nothing wrong with me?" The doctor raised an eyebrow. "Like any brain damage or internal bleeding or anything that could mess me up in the head," Aomine elaborated.

"The examination shows that your skull is perfectly intact, and there are no signs of a concussion or any trauma." The doctor reassured. "Unless you believe there's something wrong…?"

"Nah, I'm fine. Just wanted to make sure." Aomine lied smoothly.

"Alright then, if there are no other problems, I'll check you out as soon as your parents arrive."

_Speak of the devil._

The door suddenly flew open with remarkable force, slamming hard against the wall behind, causing the door to rattle at the impact.

"Daiki!" A lady with butt-long, flowing midnight blue hair burst in at impossible speeds, gripping the handles of the hospital bed with shaking fists. "Daiki! Are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere?"

"I'm fine, ma. The doctor said there's nothing wrong."

The hysteric woman looked towards the doctor for confirmation, receiving a reassuring nod in response. Realizing that her precious boy was fine, her aura made a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn as she narrowed her eyes at Aomine, glaring daggers through his soul.

"One more time you do something stupid to make your lovely mama worried again, I'll make sure you don't ever live to ever play basketball again."

Knowing that her son was a total basketball idiot, her face lit up in satisfaction as she received a fast "Yes ma'am!"

After the relevant documents were signed, Aomine was officially discharged from the confinements of the hospital. Breathing in fresh outside air for the first time in four days, the mother-son duo plus shadow made their way to the car park.

_Right, his shadow. Aomine almost forgot about him again._

The trio stepped into the car and the engine revved to life, the lightning fast journey through the highway began with Aomine's mother's foot firmly pressed down on the pedal and the car on full throttle.

Well, Aomine did get his need for speed from somewhere.

The journey home was a relatively quiet one, with occasional cursing about slow drivers coming from the driver's seat. Unable to withstand the silence, Aomine decided to break the silence.

"Ma, where's pa?" He asked despite already knowing the answer.

"Busy with work. Sorry we didn't visit you while you were hospitalized, work has been overwhelming lately." She replied with a sympathetic tone.

A few peaceful moments drifted by as the white automobile sped past other incompetent vehicles on the road, before of course, someone had the need to break it again.

"Aomine-kun," The shadow began, looking up at Aomine who was sitting beside him in the backseat. "I always wanted to say this; your mother is scary."

"Aha, I know."

"Daiki?" Aomine's mother looked at her son through her rear-view mirror with a raised eyebrow. "You know what?"

_Shit! _Aomine let the fact that he was the only one who could see, or hear, this guy totally slip his mind. Brain running at a hundred miles an hour, he formulated another cover to hide his blunder.

"Aha… I know you love me very much, ma."

Well, that killed two birds with one stone. The tan lady didn't only accept the cover, but looked immensely happy throughout the remainder of the journey. Meanwhile, Kuroko felt an upward twitch threaten the ends of his lips, an obviously amused look in his eyes.

_Aomine wondered if it were possible to kill shadows._

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AN: Ahaha, I know this chapter is severely less than satisfactory, and actually didn't serve much purpose besides being a transition from the hospital back into Aomine's normal life. As a result, the pace also came out a lot slower than I intended it to be, so I hope it's not too boring. Aomine will back to school by next chapter (I hope), so hopefully things will pick up from there 8D

You can now check when the next chapter is going to be published by looking at my profile! Deadlines ensure that I keep writing =w=

Thanks for reading! Reviews as always are greatly appreciated 3


	4. Chapter 4

AN: I actually posted on time! I noticed that I tend to write quite little for each chapter (around 1100 words on average), so this chapter will be slightly lengthier (1900 words)

To answer _Jake Lodge's _question: I'm not too sure by what you mean by 'substantial', but if you're referring to whether Aomine can touch Kuroko physically, the answer is no… as of now, at least. There will be another chapter explaining the touching concept (maybe around chapter 7?). I don't want to bombard you guys with too many theories in a row ;w;

There's currently a very bad haze here in Singapore (thanks to deforestation in a neighboring country), and the air is extremely polluted, so I'm sort of writing this with a headache OAO SEA readers hope you're all okay!

Kawaii reviewers of chapter 3! _mokona-au-chocopyuh, Another observer of the world, Jake Lodge, Joey Bermuda Ketail, Cocoaflower_. I heart you all so much~ I know I stopped replying to some reviews, but I read every single one of them and all reviews are greatly appreciated!

Warnings for this chapter: Profanities (courtesy of Haizaki)

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Chapter 4

Aomine landed face first into the familiar comfort of his bed, muscles instantly relaxing and nostrils taking in the scent of ol' home sweet home. Rolling over so he laid on his back, he eventually felt the all too well known feel of drowsiness invade his senses. Not bothering to fight it, he closed his eyes and let the sleep swallow him whole.

Aomine was an expert in the sleeping department, after all.

The next time he gained consciousness was the next morning, where his alarm clock blared him awake, interrupting a particularly lewd dream he was enjoying. Groaning, he smashed a fist towards the direction of the offending sound, effectively silencing it and allowing him to catch a few more z's.

Of course, nothing went his way in the morning. It wasn't before long when his phone under his pillow had too started vibrating, leaving an annoying buzzing sensation at the side of his face. Unfortunately, he couldn't smash his phone, unlike his alarm clock. Flicking the device open, he placed it to his ear.

"What." He groaned irritated, already knowing who was on the other side of the line.

"Dai-chan, rise and shine! You better come to school today, I know your leg is completely healed by now, so you have no excuse to skip classes or practices today." Momoi chirped in a sing-song voice through the phone.

"I know, damn it. Noisy woman."

"You'd better not oversleep and come late again. You know Akashi is particular about coming on time. If you don't…" The last part was left understood even without it being said.

"Yeah, yeah. I already said I know. Bye."

Snapping the telecommunication device close, Aomine sat up, stretching his arms upwards with still closed eyes. _Damn_, he thought. And you'd think they would cut the injured person some slack.

"Aomine-kun, that's not very nice. Momoi-san was just caring for you."

Eyelids shot open at the foreign voice, navy blue irises surrounded by bloodshot whites glanced in the direction of the familiar yet still unfamiliar blue haired figure. Deciding to ignore the shadow, he got up from his bed and made a beeline to the restroom to wash up.

Except that Kuroko followed him in. Of course, Aomine didn't even notice the shadow behind him until he had turn around and closed the door, giving off a manly "eep!" when he saw the pale boy.

"Dude! Why did you follow me in? Get out! Haven't you heard of privacy?"

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Why not?! Just step out through the door and get out!" Aomine yelled exasperated, grabbing the door knob and flinging the door open violently.

"I can't stay more than five meters away from you."

Confusion replaced the infuriated look on Aomine's face. "Huh? Why?" Shoving a pinkie up his nostril, he started picking his nose obscenely. "Sounds like a pretty stupid statement to me." He looked at Kuroko expectantly, waiting for an explaination.

"Because," Kuroko sighed. "Have you ever seen someone's shadow separate or detach from them?"

"No…"

"Precisely. As shadows, our duty is to follow you humans everywhere you go and keep the distance between us as minimal as possible. That distance being a maximum of five meters."

"Well," Aomine scratched his head, not quite adapt to the entire shadow concept-thing yet. He yanked a few locks of tangled hair, trying to think of a solution to the current problem at hand. "You can still stand by the door outside. The distance between the door and the end of the toilet should be around five meters."

"True, but I'm not taking my chances. I try and keep the distance to a max of three meters personally to be safe." Kuroko's blank sky blue eyes bored into those of Aomine's.

"What happens when you exceed five meters anyway?" Aomine scoffed.

"I'm… not sure." Kuroko glanced down with a lost expression. "I was created with the five meter rule already ingrained into my head. I never really questioned what would happen if I broke it."

"Although," Kuroko continued, a blank look now clouding over his eyes. "I heard rumors that those who broke the rule would just… disappear. _I guess you could call it the shadow equivalent of dying_."

-x-x-x-

After that restroom event, it wasn't wrong to describe the rest of Aomine's morning as awkward. Seeing that Kuroko had refused to step out of the bathroom while Aomine had to wash up and get ready for school eventually, the two came to a compromise where by Kuroko could remain in the bathroom on the condition that he faced the wall with his eyes closed and not peek while Aomine got ready.

The journey on the way to school was generally uneventful as well. Kuroko had stopped talking since Aomine couldn't respond while in public (he had learnt to stop replying his shadow after those countless embarrassing blunders). Aomine noted how Kuroko just phased through other commuters on the train, seeing that there wasn't any space for Kuroko to stand without having to pass through oblivious commuters.

Aomine wondered if Kuroko could possess people, seeing how he could stand _through_ them. Then again, he wasn't a ghost.

Practice went by as per normal, with Akashi being ruthless with the training menu as usual. Unnatural sounds of snipping scissors echoed throughout the court in a sort of happy and satisfactory beat as the rainbow haired team ran their laps around the court.

Aomine was about to complete his third lap when he noticed harsh panting from the person behind him. Looking back in curiosity to find the source of the rapid breathing, since first string members didn't have such pathetic stamina, he noticed that it was none other than the teal haired shadow. Kuroko, who was paler than he usually was, which Aomine didn't think was possible by the way, was running behind him, desperately trying to keep up with Aomine and his insane running pace.

"Hey," Aomine turned his head and mumbled as inconspicuously as he could. "You okay?"

The shadow looked up to meet Aomine's gaze, nodding slowly in his attempt to response. The poor guy looked like he was about to collapse from exhaustion after running three laps at Aomine's pace. Seeing that they still had seven more left to run, Aomine slowed down his speed to allow his shadow to catch up and cope.

"Daiki." A cold voice pierced through the court towards Aomine. "Quit slacking off. Increase your pace or I'll double your laps."

_Trust Akashi to notice the slightest difference in running speed._

Having no choice, Aomine resumed his usual pace after that order, throwing an apologetic look to Kuroko behind him before doing so. Needless to say, by the time the running stopped, Aomine's legs were all cramped up and sore.

Meanwhile, his shadow was on his hand and knees, coughing profusely and making gagging sounds. While Kuroko wasn't bathed in sweat, he was obviously far more tired beyond anyone in the court. Once again feeling sorry for his shadow, Aomine decided to stand stationary where he was, not wanting to force his shadow to move along with him.

"Everyone gather." Akashi announced. "We'll be playing a mini game, three on three."

Aomine glanced to the side where his pale shadow was still on the ground gasping for breath, but he looked like he could at least crawl now. Walking as slowly as possible to where the rest of the regulars were gathering, he stole occasional peeks at the shadow to make sure he was crawling at least less than five meters away.

"Aominecchi is slow today," Kise cooed. "Is your leg really alright?"

"Ryota." The red haired captain interrupted. "His leg is completely fine and healed. I can see it." Akashi decided to throw in the later part after witnessing the raised eyebrows of the other team members who probably wondered how he knew.

But of course, Akashi would know everything even without seeing it himself. He was always right, therefore he always had his way of knowing.

"Anyway," Akashi continued. "We'll be playing a short match. First team to reach twenty points wins. Daiki, Ryouta, Shougo, you'll be the blue team. Shintarou, Atsushi and I will be the red team. Five minutes, go and warm up."

Muttered 'hai's echoed through the hall as the miracles split into their respective teams to stretch and get ready for the game. Suddenly remembering his shadow, he looked down behind him, panic rushing through him when he noticed his shadow wasn't there anymore. "Kuroko?" He voiced out loud.

"I'm right here, Aomine-Kun."

"Gah!" The second manly yelp of the day slipped out of Aomine's mouth when he turned back around to the direction of that well-known monotonous voice.

"Aominecchi?" It was now Kise's turn to turn round and look back. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Uh, I almost tripped on something, that's it."

Kise looked on the ground where Aomine stood, noticing that there was nothing within a good radius Aomine could trip on. Deciding not to pursue the matter, he just flashed his signature smile and urged his idol to hurry and get ready for the match.

_'Something is definitely off about Aominecchi.'_ Kise thought.

-x-x-x-

"Aominecchi, catch!" The orange ball sailed into Aomine's field of view. Kise wasn't really the passing type, but he had no choice after facing the purple haired giant in front of him.

Catching the ball with his dominant hand, Aomine accelerated forward towards the net, dribbling the ball with expert control. Of course, the other team wouldn't allow him to score that easily. An opposing player, none other than Akashi himself, stepped in front of Aomine, obstructing his way.

_"Tch." _As if such a simple block could stop the ace. Tossing the ball into the air behind him, he twirled backwards and caught the orange sphere, palms facing outwards. Using his signature zero-to-max acceleration, the bluenette sped and ran a hundred-and-eighty degrees around Akashi, ball rebounding noisily against the tilled court and towards the hoop.

Or at least, that was the plan. As he caught the ball in his palm, he launched himself from his pivot foot, racing in a semicircular motion around Akashi before the captain had the time to react… Only to find a pale figure standing in his intended pathway. Panic overwhelmed his senses and he performed an emergency brake to prevent himself from crashing into the sky haired boy, shock causing him to stumble and fall ungracefully onto his bum in front said shadow.

"Oi! Ahomine! What the fuck are you doing?" The silver haired player yelled from the other side of the court.

"Eh? Did Akashicchi perform an ankle break? I didn't see."

"Damn it…" Aomine got up, rubbing his backside in a not so gentlemanly manner.

"Aomine-kun," the pale boy finally spoke up, an apologetic look on his usually stoic face. "You should have just kept running. You would have just ran _through_ me anyway."

Aomine, as much as he wanted to rebut saying that it was natural instinct to try and not collide into someone in front of you, couldn't as he remembered that he was still in practice, in front of five other curious observers.

"Practice is over." Akashi announced. "Go wash up. Lessons start in fifteen."

The regulars of the Teiko basketball club disbanded once more, heading to their lockers to retrieve their things and wash up for the remainder of the day, Aomine included. Kuroko trailed behind him meekly with his head bowed down, seemingly guilty.

"Wait." The red haired captain called out, back still facing the retreating figures of the other rainbow haired players.

_"Daiki, meet me after school today. This is an order."_

* * *

AN: Ah, I really can't write about basketball matches. Sorry if you couldn't really picture what was going on in that scene. Also, if you're wondering about the inaccuracy of Akashi's play, that will be explained in the next chapter :)

Oho, so it now also looks like Kise and Akashi are onto Aomine~ Sorry for abusing page breaks, I really have no idea how to shift onto the next scene without them 8'D

If you didn't notice, I changed the summary of the story as well. I'll probably edit it from time to time to accurately reflect how the story is going (since the chapters always somehow deviate from the original plot and plan)

The ANs in this chapter are far too long ._.

Thanks so much for reading! If it's convenient please drop a review or follow/favorite if you enjoyed this! The support is much appreciated and keeps me writing :)

**EDIT 25/6**: Corrected some minor grammatical errors.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: I'M SO SORRY THIS CHAPTER IS 1 WEEK LATE! I know I said I would publish it last Friday but I was busy with studies and Cosfest OTL This update took a lot longer than usual, so I wrote an even longer chapter to compensate for it 8'D And since I noticed you guys prefer longer chapters =w=

I was actually on a school vacation when I started writing this, but school has just started (and I'm taking my GCEs this year orz), so updates will become rather irregular from now on :l I'll still try to update as often as possible though!

Reviewers for chapter 4, let me hug you all w _mokona-au-chocopyuh, AspergianStoryteller Cocoaflower, Jake Lodge, Neko11Tama10, phoenix-dewdrop, Kuroshiroryuu, Joey Bermuda Ketail, pnar. _Your support is much appreciated!

_Pnar_: This chappy answers half your question :D

Warning for this chapter: Slight AoKi (sorry I couldn't resist 8D)

* * *

Chapter 5

_"Daiki, meet me after school today. This is an order."_

The words still rang in Aomine's mind while he showered, sending chills down his spine despite the warm water that flowed down it. Kuroko, following the morning routine, had stood in a corner of the room, back facing the showering team and eyes squeezed shut.

It wasn't that Aomine was self-conscious of his body, heck; he didn't mind showering stark naked beside the other Generation of Miracles, it was just he felt weird exposing his body to someone whom he hardly knew.

Who happens to be his shadow.

Who happens to have been by his side for the past thirteen years without him even knowing. Horror suddenly washed across Aomine as he realized that Kuroko was already more than exposed to his naked body after seeing it for so many years during the oblivious times when he didn't know his shadow had a conscience.

Kuroko had already seen everything. There was no point in asking him to stand against the wall. He had already seen Aomine's naked body every day for over a decade. Aomine resisted the temptation to knock his head against the cold tile wall in realization.

"Aominecchi, are you okay? You look a little pale... or at least as pale as you can get. And you've been staring at the wall for at least five minutes. Is there something wrong? A crack? A peep hole?" Kise gasped in exaggerated panic at his own deduction, leaning in towards the wall beside Aomine to closely observe the cracked tile wall.

Aomine, finally snapping out of his horror induced trance, pushed Kise back to his original shower position, snorting at the blond's action. "That just looked wrong you know, with your butt sticking out and back bent like that."

Kise flashed him a curious and painfully dense look. "Never mind what I said." Aomine sighed. "Anyway, what kind of creep would want to peep on a bunch of _guys_? There's nothing there, idiot."

"I guess you're right, Aominecchi." Kise flashed his model smile.

-x-x-x-

Even before lessons had started and before the teacher had walked in, Aomine was already knocked out cold and snoring on his desk. Aomine would have preferred to sleep on the roof instead, but after being on the receiving end of the constant nagging from his pink haired childhood friend, he decided he'll get more peace sleeping in by sleeping in class.

"_Mou_, Aomine-kun, I didn't ask you to come to lesson just to sleep again."

"Shut up, Satsuki. Teacher ain't even here yet anyway." Aomine mumbled into his arm.

Trust him to jinx his own luck. Just as he finished that statement, he heard the classroom door close, high heeled shoes clicking as the teacher walked to the front of the class. Sitting up and propping his head on his hand, he decided to at least pretend to listen to the first fifteen minutes of the lesson. After all, he had been absent for a few days after the accident.

Blinking the blurriness out of his eyes, he noticed a second adult walk in behind his math teacher. _'Huh, a trainee.'_ He thought. The class stood up, bowed, and greeted the teachers.

"Okay class, turn to page fifteen of your textbooks…"

_'No introduction? That's weird.' _Aomine pondered, but quickly dismissing the thought after he considered the fact that the trainee could have been introduced while he was absent.

Rubbing his eyes to further get rid of the sleep which still partially clouded them, he then suddenly noticed that there were teenagers of his age standing beside every student's table, going about their own business, some even interacting with each other without paying attention to the teacher in front.

_'An influx of transfer students? Can't be, they aren't wearing the school uniform. Probably exchange students, but why aren't they provided chairs to sit on? What's more they actually have the balls to talk openly in the middle of lesson.'_ Aomine let his thoughts drift while he observed the unusual scene in front of him. Teenagers his age clad in casual clothing running amok around the classroom, some talking, even walking and doing things usually deemed unrespectful in a classroom. Although, he noted that while some of them strayed around, all of them generally kept near to an assigned table.

Seeing that everyone had a respective exchange student, he glanced to his side to see if he had one as well. Of course, to be met with none other than large blank blue orbs that stared directly into his soul.

"Gah!" Despite the countless number of scares he got from this guy, he still wasn't used to the prospect of him seemingly coming from nowhere, especially since he was so easily forgotten. Internally cursing himself, he looked forward only to see dozens of pairs of curious eyes staring straight at him.

"Is there anything wrong, Aomine-kun?" The teacher inquired, irritation clearly written on her face.

"Nothing, sorry." He grumbled, planting his forehead onto his desk in his frustration and in an attempt to hide the small blush of embarrassment he felt creep up to his cheeks. Even if Aomine was tanned, he wasn't going to risk it being seen.

Realizing that his head was now on the table, he seized the opportunity to doze off into another sleep, since he was in the appropriate position anyway.

The bell which signaled the end of school had been Aomine's accustomed alarm clock since the first time he heard it. Sleeping on a desk was definitely more uncomfortable than on the roof, and his muscles were aching and numb by the time he woke up. Stretching his sore limbs, he absentmindedly slung his school bag over his shoulders and headed for the door, being the first to leave the classroom while everyone else still scrambled to pack.

"Aomine-kun!" He heard the dreaded pink haired girl shout from across the class. "Don't forget your meeting with Akashi!"

_Damn._ He had almost forgotten. Thank god for his annoying childhood friend or else his head would be of by tomorrow. Raising his arm in a gesture of gratitude, he strode out of the classroom, ignoring all the eyes that were on him.

"Aomine-kun, you should be nicer to Momoi-san."

"Keh, that woman doesn't deserve to be treated ni-" Aomine spun around, realizing that he had responded without knowing who he was talking to. He wasn't surprised anymore when he looked down and saw the shock of bright blue hair. Turning back, he continued walking.

"Anyway, Aomine-kun, where are you meeting Akashi-kun?"

Aomine stopped in his tracks, realizing he had no idea where he was headed to. It was then his phone vibrated in his pocket, signaling a received message.

Speak of the devil, Aomine thought once more as he looked at the bright display of his cellphone screen.

_From: Akashi  
Subject: Location_

_Meet me in the first string basketball court. You have three minutes._

Calculating the distance relative to the time he had in his head, he realized that he would barely make it if he sprinted all the way. Glancing a somewhat sorry look at the shadow beside him, who was peering at his side to look at the message, Aomine snapped his phone shut and jogged off to his destination, making sure to only gradually increase his speed so Kuroko could keep up.

Meanwhile, a certain red haired captain was keeping track of the time, accompanied by a purple haired giant who stood behind him, grazing lazily on his bag of chips.

_'Aomine would usually be here by now'_ Akashi smirked, observing the seconds slip past through his stop watch. _Fifty seconds left, twenty, ten, five…_

"I'm here!" The double doors to the gym burst open, a sweaty Aomine followed by an exhausted Kuroko strode in, carefully watching the captain's expression; sinister and cunning.

"You're on time. But you were still slow." Akashi casually stated. "You know I don't except anyone slacking off in my team, Daiki."

"I understand, I'll work har-"

"Or," Akashi interrupted the navy haired ace. _"Is it because there's something holding you back?"_

Aomine hated that knowing look on Akashi's face. He couldn't have possibly known, even with his freaky way of finding information, he couldn't have possibly found out… could he?

There was no way Akashi could have known about Kuroko.

"I know, Daiki. I know everything. After all, I'm always right."

"Akashi, why did you call me here? Get to the point." Aomine growled. There was just no way Akashi would know about this shadow business, he tried to convince himself. Knowing everything and being right in everything was one thing, but being involved with the supernatural just made Akashi even more sinister and scary. Twin blood red eyes gleamed in amusement at Aomine's slightly alarmed expression, panic slowly building up as the red head slowly shifted his gaze to the left, staring straight through the pale, azure haired shadow.

_No, no, no, no, no… Aomine chanted in his head._

_"Kuroko Tetsuya, you have been quite troublesome."_

-x-x-x-

Aomine tossed and turned in his bed, unable to sleep after the events which had taken place that afternoon, which had evidently left a scar in his memory. While he always thought Akashi to be scary, he never thought that he would be well, _that_ terrifying.

Grabbing his phone which laid on his bedside drawer, he flipped the devise open to check the time, squinting at the burst of light that now invaded his vision.

2:51 AM. He really needed to rest now if he didn't want to oversleep for tomorrow's morning practice, and facing the red head's rage was the last thing he wanted to do after that traumatic experience.

Rolling over, he squinted his eyes shut, desperately trying to find rest in his mind which was still in a turmoil. As he finally somewhat drifted off to the land of dreams, he unwillingly found the day's scene play through his mind for the God-knows-what time.

_"Kuroko Tetsuya, you have been quite troublesome."_

_Two pairs of blue eyes simultaneously widened in shock, staring at the smirking captain with similar looks of disbelief._

_"You can see… Kuroko?"_

_"Of course I can, Daiki. How else would I be able to address him?"_

_"How…" Kuroko decided to speak up._

_"How is none of your business, shadow." Akashi hissed at the pale boy. "More importantly though, is how you can stay out of Daiki's life. You are an unwanted distraction; a hindrance, to both Daiki and this team. I ask that you mind your own business and not get others involve. Just like how you've always done before the accident happened."_

_Akashi's tone was cold, piercing right through Kuroko with its intended effect._

_"Akashi…" Aomine felt the need to defend his poor shadow, who looked like he was on the verge of bursting into tears, if he had the capacity to do so at least._

_"Don't interfere, Daiki. And the same goes to you. Pretend this entire fiasco never happened, ignore your shadow and go on about your daily life. Do not allow this unfortunate event to affect your life or your basketball. Just pretend he doesn't exist, should be pretty easy." Akashi ended with a smirk._

_As much as Aomine wanted to rebut the captain, he knew it was more strategically safe to pretend to abide to Akashi's wishes for the time being, giving a reluctant "I understand" to the tyrant before heading home, wanting to escape from the suffocating atmosphere that now draped the basketball court._

_Before he knew it, the moment he stepped out of the large double doors that marked the exit to the basketball court, he was sprinting at full speed as far away from the school as possible, wanting to shake of the ominous feeling that lingered from his talk with Akashi. He only slowed down when violent panting filled his ears from behind him, remembering that Kuroko had atrocious stamina despite being a shadow._

_'Just ignore him.' Akashi's words invaded into his mind once again._

_Aomine wasn't sure to run or stay stationary anymore._

-x-x-x-

"Aomine-kun… Aomine-kun… You're going to be late. It's eight o'clock now, you have ten minutes to prepare for school. There's morning practice today."

Aomine shot up at the sound of that, forcefully cracking his crusted eyelids open, morning blurriness still clouding his vision. Scrambling around the room, he grabbed hold of loose pieces of school uniform scattered on the floor and tumbled his way into the bathroom, tripping over a few loose items on the way. After that traumatizing experience with the red haired captain there was no way he wanted to face his wrath again especially after that incident.

Running to the train station, he once again noticed Kuroko desperately following behind. There was no way he could slow down or else he would miss the train that would bring him to school on time. The gears in his head began to start spinning.

_Die by Akashi's hands for not following instructions to ignore the shadow and in addition to being late, or stop pitying Kuroko and risk losing him forever when the five meters are exceeded?_

He had to make the decision, fast.

_He has already done this for thirteen years anyway._ Suppressing all emotions and thoughts that told him to slow down for the shadow, he sped up ahead, not failing to notice the mix look of dejection and exhaustion on his shadow's face when he turned his head.

_Are you happy now, Akashi?_

Aomine was about to rush in head first into the awaiting train doors like how he always did every morning, only to be stopped by the disturbing sight before him.

The train was twice as crowded as usual, which Aomine thought wasn't possible… Which wasn't possible. The extra load of people that appeared only today were phrased through the other commuters, similarly to how Kuroko was standing through oblivious people the day before on the train. Rubbing and blinking his eyes to make sure that he wasn't seeing things, though he had been witnessing more and more disturbing things the past few days, he couldn't fathom the sight before him.

_"The train is leaving the station. Beep beep beep."_ Twin train doors slid towards each other and the train accelerated away, Aomine still standing where he was mouth gaping open like an idiot.

"Kuroko?"

No response.

"Kuroko?" He tried again, turning around to look for his shadow who was standing behind him, arms folded across his chest and... Was he pouting?!

"Oi, Kuroko. Answer me when I call you." Still no reply from the shadow, who seemed to have pressed his lips further together at that statement, intent on not leaking out a word.

"Kuroko, what's up with y-"

"I do not exist, Aomine-kun."

"Huh?" The taller of the two blurted intelligently, baffled at his shadow's strange behavior.

"I do not exist. Just continue ignoring me."

Suddenly the lights when flickered on in his head. Sighing, he squinted at the teal haired boy, who at the moment looked like a preschooler denied of his favorite toy.

"You're pissed at me for running without waiting for you, aren't you?"

Aomine swore Kuroko's pout became more prominent.

"Come on Kuroko, you can throw your tantrums later." The split second murderous glint that crossed cerulean eyes were not failed to be caught by Aomine. "I need your help to explain… that." He continued, pointing to the tracks where the train used to be.

"_That?_" Kuroko raised an eyebrow.

"You know… just now, that disturbing sight inside the train cabin."

"I didn't notice anything different."

"Urgh, didn't you see how the train was twice as full as usua-"

"I don't think that's possible, Aomine-kun."

"IT ISN'T!" Aomine exploded. "That's why half the people were standing through…"

"Each other?" Kuroko finished for him, seeing that he was still traumatized from the sight.

"Yeah." Aomine coughed. "This isn't another shadow related thing, is it?"

"I'm afraid it might be," Kuroko deadpanned.

"Explaining would be nice."

"I'm not too sure, but I believe you have started to see to see other people's shadows, judging from the sight you've just described to me Aomine-kun." Kuroko paused to watch his counterpart's eyes widen. "You aren't the only one with a shadow, you know. Every human has one."

Aomine wasn't the brightest light on the Christmas tree, and it never occurred to him that if he could see his own shadow, why couldn't he see other people's? Until now that is.

"Then why now? Why not earlier, or from the beginning? Why could I only see you from the start?"

"I'm not sure either. However, I have a few theories, but we'll save that for later. The next train is coming."

Sure enough, the monochrome colored train pulled into the station with a screech, doors sliding open to reveal a sight similar to the train before. Now Aomine had to be careful while squeezing into the cabin, since he couldn't tell who the actual humans were and who were shadows. He strategically used his elbow to nudge the surrounding people 'accidentally', testing to see if they could be phrased through so he could stand on the train.

Finally finding a spot, he heaved a sigh of relief, grabbing hold to the nearest pole to maintain his balance while the train moved. Despite not having even arrived in school yet, he was exhausted beyond what he should have been.

Speaking of exhaustion, there was morning practice. And he was late. Right.

"Aomine-kun," The tan teen heard the familiar voice drift into his ears. He grunted in response, since he couldn't explicitly answer his shadow without being videoed and posted on the internet with the caption "CRAZY TEIKO BOY TALKS TO HIMSELF ON THE TRAIN".

"At the station just now, while we were talking, I forgot to tell you. People were pointing and staring at you with funny expressions on their faces. I think some of them even took a video of our conversation.

_Well, too late_. Funny how Kuroko used _'our'_, when he couldn't even be caught on tape anyway.

_Aomine wanted so badly to hurt someone right now, specifically the owner of the mischievous blue eyes which now glanced up at him._

* * *

AN: If you're wondering why Aomine is so bothered about the train sight, just imagine you were in his shoes. I would be thoroughly freaked out if I saw partial bodies poking out of each other 8D

I seriously can't help my draggy writing style, so I can't help but think that it might be boring every time I write /headdesk. Well, here you have it, a longer chapter update! (I know it's still short by FF standards but it's still longer than my usual ;w;)

As I previously mentioned, updates will be more irregular from now on, so look at my profile for update statuses and dates! However, I'll try to maintain my chapters at this length.

Follow/favorite if you liked it! I love stats heh heh. Reviews are super appreciated especially at this point of time! I lub you all~


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